Gauchos Men Close 2nd, Women 1st at Big West Conference Championships

San Luis Obispo, Calif. - Santa Barbara's men's team finished a very close second to Cal Poly who won their 4th straight title. The 13th-ranked Gauchos were just four points behind the #24 Mustangs at 29-33. Third place belonged to UC Irvine (106), with Long Beach State (110) and Cal State Fullerton (140) coming in behind the Anteaters. UC Riverside (150) and Cal State Northridge (192) rounded out the men's standings.

UCSB posted four runners in the top 10 and scored all five of its runners in the top 11 to just miss the crown. The men were led by second place Mike Chavez, who completed the 8K course in 25:47.7, just two seconds behind individual champ Phillip Reid from Cal Poly. J.D. Krawczyk was right behind Chavez finishing in third at 26:03.1. Micah Tyhurst (8th-26:22.2), 2005 individual champion Chris Ashley (9th-26:26.1) and Tim Aukshunas (11th-26:32.4) rounded out the UCSB contingent of scorers.

UC Santa Barbara's women reclaimed the Big West title thanks to its lowest-ever score at the championship with 26 points. Long Beach State was second thanks to a school-record effort of 72 points, while UC Irvine was right behind the 49ers with 75 tallies. Fourth place belonged to UC Riverside with 84 points, while host Cal Poly finished fifth with 140 points. Cal State Fullerton (141), Cal State Northridge (203) and Pacific (251) rounded out the women's side.